


All Because of You

by wholehearted



Series: Cody Family Fix-it Fics [1]
Category: Animal Kingdom (TV)
Genre: Apologies, Big Decisions, Death of major character, Eventual Happy Ending, Family, Fix-It of Sorts, Hurt/Comfort, Love, M/M, Music, Painful Choices
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-06-26
Packaged: 2020-05-20 07:34:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19372150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wholehearted/pseuds/wholehearted
Summary: Deran tries to figure out this mess. [This takes place after 0405]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Fix-it fics of sorts. I’m absolutely convinced we’ll have a satisfactory conclusion to this D&A saga. Nothing but HEA for our boys, but the finale is still 7 weeks away. Until then, this is my was of dealing with it. 
> 
> The fic is inspired by the O.A.R. song, [All Because of You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7hneSQmR3c). Obvs, title is borrowed, as are the lyrics.  
>  **  
> **  
>  _I never thought I'd find you in this life_  
>   
>  **  
> **  
>  _Broken shadows disappear tonight_  
>   
>  **  
> **  
>  _You're the reason that all my dreams come true_  
>   
>  **  
> **  
>  _All because of you_  
>   
> 
>  
> 
> **I hope you enjoy it!**

Deran is sitting on a chair, across the room, watching Adrian sleep in their bed.  The words of this song tumbling through his mind.  

 

**_Take, take, take the little moment_ **

**_Don’t, don’t, don’t forget to hold ‘em_ **

**_Stay, stay, stay a little longer._ **

 

**_Can, can, can you hear the night talk?_ **

**_Two hearts beating on a sidewalk_ **

**_Put your head on my shoulder._ **

 

He’s got to figure out a way to get Adrian untangled from this mess.  

 

It’d been a complete shitshow when he finally found out how deep Adrian was in, how much was at stake, how close he was to losing him forever.  And while Deran wasn’t happy that Adrian had given the feds peripheral information on the Codys, he understood it. Adrian hadn’t really given law enforcement more than what could be found through an internet search or tailing any of the boys for a few days. 

 

What Deran had been most upset about was the fact that Adrian hadn’t come to him when things got really fucked. That he hadn’t utilized the resources available to him, Deran’s connections and his experience in the criminal world. He felt like a failure that Adrian didn’t trust him enough to let him help.  But it had all come out fairly quickly.

 

A few days after their initial confrontation at the bar, the two of them were at home and got into a massive screaming match.  Deran hollering that Adrian needed to get away from Jack, and that the sloppy dirtbag was gonna land Adrian in a heap of trouble. The degenerate had been arrested so many times, it was a wonder the state of California kept letting him out at all. 

 

In the middle of their yelling, Adrian broke down. His face turned beet red, he kicked a chair and punched a wall as tears streamed down his face. Deran had never seen Adrian flip out like that, unprovoked. The last time he'd even seen Adrian in a fight was when they were teens and threw down with a couple of dude-bros who mistakenly thought the two scrawny surfers couldn't hold their own. The idiots had been left on the ground confused and bleeding when all was said and done.

 

At first, Deran was stunned by the sight of Adrian’s outburst, but then he rushed to comfort Adrian, only to find himself being pushed away. Deran just stood there dumbly blinking. The silence between them made Deran want to rip out his hair, but he stayed quiet, until finally Adrian whispered, “I fucked up. _Bad_.” 

 

Adrian’s tears turned into sobbing, body heaving, and Deran took a chance.  He quickly wrapped Adrian in his arms, and when he felt himself being pushed away again, he just held on tighter. Deran held him until all the fight seemed to fall away, and he was left with a sagging Adrian in his arms.  

 

Deran walk-carried Adrian to their bed and laid him down. He wanted to spoon him, hold him from behind, bury his face in the warmth of Adrian’s neck, but he knew there was more talking that needed to be done first. So he settled for lying in front of Adrian, their legs tangled, his hand running up and over Adrian’s arm and the side of his back and torso.  Occasionally Deran would run his fingers through the dark ginger locks or trace the edge of his freckled jaw. He just waited, as Adrian cried, brushing away tears and murmuring words of ease and comfort. 

 

_“It’s okay...whatever it is...we can figure it out...just talk to me, Adrian...let me help you...I want to.”_

 

Eventually, in a broken-mumble, Adrian told him the whole story.  Deran’s body had flushed hot, and then gone cold. He’d been afraid, angry, and confused.  A myriad of sensations and feelings washing over him, but Deran maintained his mien of calmness, for Adrian.  Continuing gentle strokes and and soft caresses over his boyfriend’s shaking form. When Adrian was done, and chanced a look up, Deran almost crumbled.  The pain and sadness he saw in those deep blue pools nearly felled him. He did the only thing he could think to do, pulled Adrian half on/half off him, wrapped him in his arms, and let Adrian continue to cry. 

 

Deran closed his eyes then, holding his man tight, and wracked his brain for how to solve their problem.  

 

So now, as he sits and watches Adrian’s sleeping form rise and fall, the cadence of his breaths matching the ebb and flow of the ocean outside their window, he wonders how the hell he’s gonna fix this situation. 

 

He’s trying to anticipate all the moves of this chess game, when the lyrics rush in again, more poignant than ever.  

 

**_I want to matter when we go outside, and_ **

**_Hold your hand when we say goodnight, and_ **

**_Tell you how I’m gonna make our dreams come true._ **

 

**_All because of you._ **

 

He knows what he has to do.  A lot of people are going to be pissed at him, but it’s worth the risk. There’s absolutely _nothing_ in this world he wouldn’t do for Adrian, whether he wants him to or not.  

 

~~~~

 

Over the next couple of days he calls out from work. Trusting Roxy and Pope to keep the bar from burning to the ground.  He doesn’t tell Adrian where he is or what he’s doing during the days, but Deran’s convinces him enough not to show up at The Drop and there haven't been any follow up questions.  

 

Mid-afternoon on the third day he drops papers in front of Adrian while he’s lying on the couch in their living room, reading a book.  

 

“What’s this?” He sits up, looking at the papers in his hands.  Elbows resting on his knees, leafing through the pages.

 

“What’s it look like?”

 

“A bank statement, but why?” Adrian looks up at him with those startling blue eyes.  He’s known this man for almost half his life, and those eyes never fail to make Deran’s heart clench and his pulse quicken.  

 

“I’m gonna sell the buildings Smurf gave me.”

 

“O-kay.”  He doesn’t seem to get it, so Deran is going to have to be more direct.

 

“It’s a joint account, Adrian. When the sales of the properties go through, you’ll have access to everything...to all the money.”

 

Those big blue eyes shoot wide for a moment, then settle into a scowl. “Deran, I don’t want--”

 

“I know, I know, but this is part of what I can actually do to help.  You need a good lawyer and I don’t want you to feel like it’s my money.  It’s ours.”

 

“Deran, it’s not _our_ money.” Adrian shakes his head, slightly crumpling the documents in his hand.

 

“But it _is_ , or at least...it will be.”

 

“What are you talking about?” His scowl deepens.

 

“Marry me, Adrian.” It’s not a question, Deran says the words with confidence and sureness.

 

“What?! Are you fucking nuts, man?”

 

“I've thought about this, and while it doesn’t solve all of the problems, it helps with you not being forced to share anymore family secrets.”

 

“Deran, I’m not going to marry you to get myself out of trouble.” Adrian’s tone sounds skeptical, his mouth pursed with tension.

 

“Then marry me because you want to...because you love me...like I’ve always loved you.”

 

Deran hears Adrian gasp.  Deran’s never said the words out loud before, he assumed Adrian always knew the truth, but he’s realized that words matter.  Saying it matters. And so he says what’s needed to be said for a long time.  

 

Deran moves to sit on the coffee table, wedging his knees between Adrian’s and grasping his hands. He takes a big breath.

 

“Please. Let’s do this. Marry me, Adrian. You’re it for me. Always have been.”

 

They stare at one another for long moments, neither of them saying a word.  Deran realizes he’s scared. Scared Adrian will reject him, that he's not good enough to be wanted as a longterm commitment. 

 

Sweat breaks out all over his body, skin feeling too tight, the room feeling too hot. He feels like he can’t get enough air into his lungs, as he waits for an answer.  

 

Adrian shakes his head and sighs, and Deran wants to die.

 

Deran’s head is spinning, his world tilting off its axis, and he’s pretty sure he can actually feel his heart shattering into a thousand pieces.

 

“Okay.” Heavy inhale and exhale, a slow smile spreading across his lips. “We’ll do it your way, since my way clearly hasn’t worked. I _do_ love you too, by the way.

 

Deran launches himself at Adrian, caging in the other man’s body, his knees settling on either side of those strong hips, arms banded around Adrian’s broad shoulders.  Deran buries his head in the crook of Adrian’s neck, as muscled arms hold him tight. Adrian chuckles a little, but then begins to rub soothing circles on Deran’s back. Deran finally releases his own tears, body shuddering with relief.  

 

Deran whispers, “thank you,” as they hold each other, understanding that their lives will never be the same.

 

The words of that song float into his mind.

 

**_I, I, I’ll be here forever_ **

**_We’re so good when we’re together_ **

**_Let me hold you ‘til we’re older_ **

 

Deran has the thought: _Yes, if he'll give me a chance._


	2. Chapter 2

There are some things people keep from family because it’s for their own good.  Deran has done these things, will continue to keep those secrets, because he doesn’t regret what he’s done.  Not in the least. He’d do it all again, in a heartbeat.

 

He and Adrian had gotten married right away and immediately retained a lawyer known to be a big swinging dick in the legal community and cutthroat in the courtroom.  The lawyer was able to successfully argue spousal immunity, and challenge unlawful police procedures, successfully getting Adrian off the hook on a slew of technicalities. Or so it seemed.

 

What Adrian didn’t know, in fact no one knew, except Pope, was that after the nuptials Deran had gone to Detective Pearce himself. The deal was, if all the Cody boys were kept safe from prosecution, including Adrian, (and no matter what happened at the trial or how sentencing landed), Deran would give up Smurf. He made sure to have it all written up in official documents, reviewed by his own lawyer, before signing and sharing all the details of Janine Cody’s empire. It had been tricky, because there’d been a chance she’d talk once arrested, throwing the boys under the bus, but Deran was pretty sure he had things locked down. 

 

When Pope had told Deran Smurf was dying his heart ached at the reality of losing his mother, but the fear of losing Adrian hurt more. He’d told Pope his plan, and together they gathered the necessary evidence to hand over to the feds.

 

Pope’s part was to help take out Smurf before the trial, and Jack, in exchange for Deran’s bar, and the chance to possibly get Lena back in his life.  Maybe not custody, but visitation, and as a blood relative, a legitimate business owner, and a contributing member of society, he stood a decent chance of actually making it happen. Pope took him up on the offer.  

 

Deran helped him dig the grave for Jack, Pope dropping the wrapped up body into the desert dirt. He didn’t know how Pope had done it so fast, but he didn’t ask questions either. One half of their deal complete.  

 

The night before the feds raided Smurf’s house, he and Pope had gone to her. Sat her down and told her everything. She’d raged at them, but in her frail form she wasn’t much to look at, more sad than anything else. When she finally stopped yelling, Deran stared her down and simply said, “Either you take the pills yourself or we’re hold you down to give you a dirty dose of heroin. It’s not up for discussion. You owe us this. All of us. Julia, Baz, Pope, Craig, J, me. Either cooperate or we do it the hard way.”  

 

In the end, she’d taken a fist full of oxy and washed it down with several shots of vodka. That, mixed with the fentanyl patches she’d been given by her doctor, had been more than enough to do the trick. He and Pope stayed as she closed her eyes and drifted off. Pope used a stethoscope to confirm her heart and breathing had stopped. They tucked her into her bed, kissed her head, and swore to never speak of it again. Before they left the house Deran handed over the title to The Drop, then he went home and cried all night in Adrian’s arms. 

 

Over the weeks that followed, the DA and the feds tried to jam him up, but the terms he’d had drawn up were ironclad.  They’d threatened RICO charges, but it was a desperate and unfounded attempt to scare him. They couldn’t touch him-- _any of them_ \--and law enforcement knew it.  

 

Deran genuinely grieved the loss of his mother. Her funeral was sad and painful. Only the boys were there, and Adrian of course, as they watched her body get lowered into the ground. None of them spoke, only soft sounds of crying, as they all walked away in separate directions.  

 

That’s how it ended up, actually. All the boys sort of drifting off, living their own lives.  

 

J seemed to take Smurf’s death in stride. That chick Mia never again making an appearance, and J doubling down on college. The last Deran had heard he’d been accepted into a fancy MBA program. He had no doubt J would become a hedge fund manager or some shit. The kid was smart and ruthless, he was a Cody, after all.  

 

Criag took Smurf’s death the hardest.  He tried to drown himself in booze and drugs, but Renn was there to kick his ass and drag him into rehab. He’d been sober for awhile now, haphazardly working at The Drop, but mostly maintaining income from the rental properties Smurf had given him and the sale of their childhood home. He and Renn were making a go of it as a family. Their little boy William (everyone called him Liam) had a mass of dark hair and bright blue eyes. Craig bragged his kid was already a heartbreaker.  

 

Pope ended up being a pretty good, if not intimidating, business owner. He’d never received less than an A+ on his health inspections, and his administrative paperwork was organized within an inch of its life. He eventually got monthly visitations with Lena, which helped him maintain medication compliance and rein in his more violent tendencies. They all knew he wasn’t going to do anything that would cost him the gift of finally getting to see Cath’s daughter on a regular basis. It also helped that he’d reconnected with Amy. Deran didn’t know the full story there, but the petite blonde seemed to make Pope happy and help calm him in a way no one other than his twin could. Their new nephew also seemed to ease Pope in a pretty substantial way. He often babysat the baby bot and was already planning his  future as a successful cardiac surgeon.

 

Deran and Adrian moved to San Diego. Adrian was able to re-enroll in school, and Deran bought out a surf shop in Pacific Beach. They were close enough to visit their families regularly, but far enough away to feel like they were getting a fresh start.  

 

They bought a tiny house, for a small fortune, on the water. It was perfect, everything they’d ever wanted, ever dreamed of. They had tentative plans, after Adrian’s graduation, to purchase a bungalow in Belize that they could rent out from time to time, but would readily have available to visit when the mood struck them.

 

~~~

 

Today, Deran sits in the sand, sipping a beer and watches Adrian easily shred waves, as the words of that fateful song crest over him.  

 

**_I know that I can be a better man, and_ **

**_Learn to run when it’s hard to stand, and_ **

**_Find the songs in everything you do._ **

 

Deran whisper-sings OAR’s, _All Because of You_. The lyrics still perfectly matching his deep love and commitment to Adrian.   

 

**_It's all because of you_ **

**_I never thought I’d find you in this life_ **

**_Broken shadows disappear at night_ **

**_You’re the reason that all my dreams come true_ **

 

**_All because of you._ **

 

He regrets nothing. Deran feels happy, whole, and at _home_ , for the first time in his life. Grateful for the life he has with his husband and for the future they’re creating, together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Come find me on tumblr and let's chat (same username)!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 😊
> 
> Come find me on tumblr and let’s chat (same username)!


End file.
